Six DAC Comparison

"I’m leaning toward the lower Fe model for more warmth and a softer bass attack. I’m wondering if this assumption is correct."

@saeed79 - 

From Mojo Audio’s website:

"With each choke upgrade you get more micro-details and micro-dynamics, a more ethereal top end, a more luscious midrange, more textured and tuneful bass, better musical flow, and more engaging emotional expression."

I have had all three types of chokes in Mojo Audio DACs and I wouldn’t argue with the conclusions presented by AI below.  I would also add that I found the amorphous chokes a worthwhile overall upgrade from ferrous core chokes while the choice between amorphous vs. nanocrystal chokes is more about personal preference.  For a more detailed explanation, you could always discuss this with Benjamin at Mojo Audio,  who has been open about the differences he hears.

From AI:

The core material affects how the power supply delivers current, which in turn influences the sonic presentation.

• Ferrous Core (Entry Level): This core provides more "gestalt and slam" to the sound, with a more energetic and exciting presentation. It has a robust, impactful sound, though some reviewers note it can be slightly less subtle or textured compared to the higher tiers.
• Amorphous Core (Upgrade): The amorphous core provides an intermediate step, offering more micro-details, micro-dynamics, and a more pronounced texture than the ferrous core. The sound has a slightly lower sine wave energy representation (per Mojo Audio’s analogy), which translates to more nuances and more refined textures in the audio reproduction.
• Nanocrystal Core (Top Tier): This is the top-of-the-line option and offers the greatest refinement. The nanocrystal core provides the most profound sound quality, with a very low noise floor that allows for subtle and complex harmonic details to become apparent. The sound is more relaxed, with better timing, tune, harmonic structure, and overall musical flow, leading to more engaging emotional expression. It provides the best resolution and the most natural timbre, bringing the listener closer to an analog, vinyl-like experience.

In summary, as you move from ferrous to amorphous to nanocrystal cores, the sound signature becomes less "digital" and more organic, with increased resolution, better harmonic coherence, and a more natural, emotionally engaging presentation. The fundamental energy remains the same, but it is delivered with greater texture and nuance with the advanced core materials. 

Hi,

I've had the Mojo Evo Pro for a long time, and although when I got it I thought it would be my endgame DAC (haha, right), over time I developed a little bit of a frustration with it. It was dense and thick and lush while also detailed. But...I developed the feeling that there was still something there between me and the music. One last remaining thin veil, if you will. 

I've always been a little bit of a detail/treble-head, and I decided it was probably my declining hearing now that I'm 52. I just couldn't pick up all the detail that I had loved so much before. Ah well, age sucks. 

Then, a couple weeks ago, I got my Mystique Z Quantum, and it kinda blew my mind. My first thought was, this thing is FAST. It's hard to explain to people how a DAC can be fast or slow, but I hope people here at least can understand. For a moment on that first day, I thought to myself, Did I turn up the playback speed by a few percent somehow? 

It also brought an incredible level of DETAIL. I had thought that my days of wallowing in glorious amounts of detail were behind me, but there it was again. (That does make me wonder, what would this DAC have sounded like before my hearing started to decline? Alas I'll never know.) But it's not fatiguing. I can (and do) listen for hours. Actually, that's not quite true: on the first day I thought it was just a little harsh. I was ready to borrow a solid state amp from a friend of mine so I could burn it in 24 hours a day until it smoothed out. But, the next day, I didn't feel like that at all. Yeah, it will certainly smooth out somewhat over the next few hundred hours or so, but now I don't feel like I need to rush that process. I enjoy it immensely as it is, and I will enjoy the process of it breaking in over time. I think my brain/auditory system just wasn't accustomed to receiving that much information, and it needed a night's sleep to get used to it. 

In the end, the Mystique Z just feels like that last remaining veil between me and the music has been lifted. Now it's right there. Nothing in between. In the past whenever I've upgraded something in my system I've enjoyed the process of going back and listening to all my favorites, to hear a better, improved interpretation of the recording. That is true to some extent with the Z, but it doesn't feel like a "better interpretation," it just feels like how the music was meant to sound all along. My system just wasn't capable of putting out that sound. Now it is. 

In the end, while the Evo Pro had a certain signature (the lushness and depth, at the expense of what I realize now was a little sluggishness), the Mystique Z doesn't really have a signature at all. Somewhere Benjamin Zwickel said that it's more "emotional" than his previous models, but I don't actually think that's true. It's neither "emotional" nor "clinical." It's just a perfectly polished lens onto the sound. 

@zachawry - I am glad you are enjoying your Mystique ZQ, and I am not surprised!  Leave it powered up and you should hear the same great sound whenever you decide to play your system.

I’ve had my Mystique ZQ for around a month with 40-50hrs critical listening. I’m very happy with it. Starting with the very familiar Mystique sound I had with my X’24 NC I stepped up to a Z NC and immediately heard the difference in definition and space and articulation especially in the natural reverb and harmonics of acoustic instruments. I’d quantify that as a 5% step up for me toward nirvana in my system and room. Going from the Z NC to ZQ gave me another 5% of the magic wand. 
 

Of particular note is that I can clearly discern fine musical details and have full range enjoyment at lower volumes with the Z line. Briefly, I hooked my X NC back up and immediately heard the loss. I’m set for quite a while now. No doubt Benjamin will improve the flux capacitor again soon and we’ll all wonder about “more”. It’s a very tough cycle. 

@zachawry 

Funny how we all use different adjectives to mean the same thing.

What Zach is calling "sluggish" as opposed to "fast" is what gives the music more correct time and tune.

And that "correctness" as you put it is what my ear is calling "emotional expression."

So we're actually saying the same thing with different words. 

@mfisher702 

We upgraded the flux capacitors with unobtainium in our Z so I wouldn't be expecting there to be any real change until we incorporate dark matter. 

But seriously...

Our plan for 2026 is a new chassis for all of our products, both our Mystique Z DACs and our new Illuminati v5 power supplies. 

Sad to say the local machine shop we've been using has gotten progressively more unreliable and more expensive over the years so we're going back to a chassis company we used from the East Coast.

The only reason we stopped using this company back in 2012 was they had a fire in their factory and were unable to make chassis for about a year. By then we had local shops doing our chassis for us.

One big difference will be silver and black anodized face plates.

We won't be able to have the machined 3D "Mystique" on these anodized face plates but they will be a nice fine even grained anodized aluminum finish like many other manufacturers use. 

We're still debating on if we want to do a laser etched or printed "Mystique" on the face plate. We'll have to see what the prototypes look like.

Any opinions out there as to Mojo moving away from our current face plates and moving toward silver and black anodized face plates?

Our next DAC project, ETA 2027, will be a fully balanced, dual mono, class A, preamp DAC.

This will be a joint project between Mojo Audio and Staccato.

Staccato is going to adapt the stepped attenuator, input selection, and remote control logic circuit, from their BU-1 integrated amplifier to one of our DACs.

And we're hoping that they'll design and manufacture a 100% discrete output stage for us rather than us using a half a dozen of their class A op amp modules.

We're the US distributor for Staccato and we'll be exhibiting with Staccato at AXPONA in April (room #360).

So Jakub and I will have plenty of time to flesh out this project :^)